false prophet Balaam more than a thousand years before, which was considered to be a sure sign of the birth of the expected Messiah. The history of the appearance of this star to the three wise men, or, as they are often called, the three kings, is thus related in the Holy Scriptures.

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of King Herod, behold there came wise men from the East to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the East and are come to adore him.'

"And King Herod, learning this, was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And, assembling together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he enquired of them where Christ should be born. But they said to him, In Bethlehem of Juda, for so it is written by the prophet; And thou, Bethlehem, the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda, for out of thee shall come forth the captain that shall rule my people Israel.' Then Herod, privately calling the wise men, learned diligently of them the time of the star which appeared to them; and, sending them into Bethlehem, said, Go and diligently enquire after the child, and when you have found him, bring me word again, that I also may come and adore him.'

"Who, having heard the King, went their way; and behold the star which they had seen in the East, went before them, until it came and stood over where the child was. And seeing the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And entering into the house, they found the child with Mary, his mother; and, falling down, they adored him. And, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And, having received an answer in sleep, that they should not return to Herod, they went back another way into their own country."-Matt. ii.

Thus, my dear children, did our Blessed Lord, at his first coming into the world, call the gentiles, that is to say, all other nations besides the Jews, in the persons of the three wise men, to adore him, to show that he came to open to all mankind the gates of heaven. In memory of this great event, the Church has instituted a solemn festival, which is called the Epiphany or Appearance of the star, and sometimes Twelfth Day, because it falls on the 6th of January, the twelfth day after Christmas.

NINTH INSTRUCTION.

Fourth Article. Jesus Christ. His Passion and Death.

Q. What is the fourth article of the Creed?

A. Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried.

The fourth article of the Creed, my dear children, is about the Sufferings, Death, and Burial of our Blessed Lord. The whole life of Jesus Christ, from his Birth in the stable to his last expiring sigh upon the cross, was indeed a life of suffering; but this article relates to the cruel torments which he endured immediately before his Death, and which we commonly call his Sacred Passion. The Apostles' Creed says that he suffered under Pontius Pilate, because at that time Pontius Pilate was Governor of Judæa ; for the Jews were no longer a free people, but subject to the Romans, who had sent Pontius Pilate to rule over part of their country. It was to him that the Jews accused our Blessed Redeemer, for they had no power to put any one to death themselves. Pilate was a weak man, and, though he declared our Blessed Lord to be innocent of the charges brought against him, he nevertheless condemned him to the cruel death of the cross to please the Jews, and for fear of them making some complaint against him to the Roman Emperor; for they said, "If thou release this man, thou art not Cesar's friend."* Thus, a fatal human respect led him to commit a crying act of injustice, and to crucify the Son of God.

* John, xix. 12.

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Q. What were the chief sufferings of Christ?

A. His sweat of blood, His scourging at the pillar, His crowning with thorns, and the carrying of His cross..

In this answer are mentioned four of the principal sufferings of our Blessed Lord. You will notice that they are the same as the first four Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary; the fifth, the Crucifixion of our Lord, comes in the next answer. Thus the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary contain a short history of the Passion of Jesus Christ.

The first great suffering which our Blessed Redeemer endured in his Passion, was his Sweat of Blood. This is sometimes called his Agony, or Prayer in the Garden. On the night before he was

crucified, Jesus had gone to pray in the Garden of Olives, accompanied by his three Apostles, Peter, James, and John. Having left them at a little distance, he began his prayer, but became so overcome with the sight of our sins and ingratitude, and the natural fear of the torments he was about to endure, that he fell into a cruel agony of mind and body, and drops of blood came trickling down like sweat from every pore of his skin. It was on this occasion that he thrice repeated that beautiful prayer, "Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me. But yet, not my will, but thine be done." Then an Angel appeared from heaven to comfort him; and Jesus, knowing that it was his Father's Will that he should now enter upon his Passion, arose, and called his sleeping Apostles to come with him to meet the traitor Judas, who was at that moment entering the garden to apprehend him.

The second great suffering of our Blessed Lord, mentioned in the catechism, is his Scourging at the pillar. When our innocent Redeemer, after suffering the most barbarous treatment from the Jews

*Matt. xxvi. 39; Luke, xxii. 42.

throughout the whole night, had been condemned to death by Pilate, He was given up by him into the hands of his soldiers to be scourged and afterwards crucified. These cruel men stripped our Blessed Lord of his clothes, then tied him to a pillar, and scourged him most barbarously with leathern thongs. The number of the stripes which they gave him was revealed to St. Bridget to have been above five thousand. The whole ground about was covered with blood, and our Blessed Lord would have expired under the cruel torture, had he not supported himself by a miracle for fresh sufferings.

The third suffering which is here mentioned, the Crowning with thorns, was inflicted on our Blessed Lord by the sheer cruelty of the soldiers; for he was not condemned to suffer this barbarous torture. The Holy Scripture informs us that, after he was scourged, "the soldiers platting a crown of thorns, put it upon his head, and put on him a purple garment. And they came to him and said, Hail King of the Jews, and they gave him blows."* This torment was inflicted on our Lord in mockery of his kingly power, for the Jews had charged him with making himself king, and he himself had admitted to Pilate that he was a king, and that for this he came into the world, though he spoke of a spiritual, and not of an earthly kingdom. The pain and agony which our Lord suffered from this cruel crowning must have been intense, for the thorns of that country are long and sharp, and were on this occasion driven in by the blows of his persecutors. Pilate himself, when he beheld our dear Redeemer reduced to this pitiable state, was touched with compassion, and, hoping that the Jews, if they saw him, would be moved to some feelings of pity, brought him out to them with the crown of thorns on his head, the purple garment on his

* John, xix. 2, 3.

shoulders, and the reed in his right hand, and introduced him to them, saying, "Behold the Man." But it was all in vain; the Jews only called the more loudly," Crucify him, crucify him." *

The Carrying of the cross was the next cruel torIment that our Blessed Lord endured. Weak and fainting with hunger, thirst, and loss of blood, he had to carry to the hill of Calvary the heavy cross on which he was to be nailed. During this painful journey he fell several times; and, at length, his executioners were obliged to get one, Simon of Cyrene, whom they met coming into Jerusalem, to help Jesus to carry his cross. This, no doubt, is to teach us, my dear children, that if we wish to go after our Blessed Lord to heaven, we must follow in his footsteps, bearing our cross, which we do by submitting with patience to the labours and sufferings of this short life, and embracing them willingly for the love of God. Wherefore our Lord himself said to his disciples, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."+

Q. What else did He suffer?

A. He was nailed to the cross, and died upon it between two thieves.

It was by the cruel punishment of crucifixion that our Blessed Lord accomplished our Redemption; He was nailed to the cross, and died upon it between two thieves. Of all punishments, that of crucifixion was held in the greatest horror both by Jews and Romans. The Romans would not allow any, except the vilest of slaves and the greatest of criminals, to die on the cross; and it was for this very reason, and out of their extreme hatred to our Lord, that the chief priests urged on the Jews to cry out to Pilate, when he proposed to release Jesus, "Crucify him, crucify him." +

* John, xix. 5, 6. + Matt. xvi. 24.

John, xix. 6,